Accenting device for player-pianos.



G. H. PARSONS. ACCENTING DEVICE FOR PLAYER PIANOS. PPPPP CATION HLED OCT. 26. 1914.

Patented D90. 19, 1916.

2 SHEET sssssss 1.

IN VEN TOR PARSONS. ACCENTI E FOR PLAYER PIANos.

APPLI N FILED OCT. 25,1914.

atented D99. 19

` 2 SHEETS-suse [Ni/ENTR A TTORNEY UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEErcE.

GEORGE H. PARSONS, F STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNORA TO KROEGER PIANO COMPANY, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ACCENTING DEVICE FOR PLAYER-PIANOS.

1,209,199. Specification 0f Letters Patent -Patented Dec. 1S), 1916. Application led October 26, 1914. Serial No. 868,564.

To allwwm tf/nay] concern.' which act to keep said bellows distendcd. Be 1t known that I GEORGE H. PARSONS The ef ualizinv bellows. in fact take u J to 7 7 a a l a subject of the King of Great Britain, rea great extent the effect of added or quicksiding at Stamford, county of Fairfield, ened pressure on the pedals.

State of Connecticut, have invented an Im- The object of my present invention is to 60 provement in Accenting Devices for Playerretain to the fullest extent the equalizing Pianos, of which the following is a speciicafunction of the equalizing bellows and in tion. addition to enable the performer to accent This invention relates to player pianos notes when required. This I accomplish by and has for its object to provide an accentmeans of additional bellows 19, which I 65 ing device which will enable the performer term the accenting bellows, and which are to place any desired accent upon any note or connected by means of a pivoted link 20 notes by means of the pedals. In other with the equalizing bellows. The back of words the player produces the required acthe accenting bellows is provided with an cent by regulating the degree and quickness openingr 21 which is adapted to be closed by 70 of the pressure of the feet on the pedals. a valve 22 controlled by means of an accent In the accompanying drawings forming a lever 23 and intermediate connections. The part of this specification, Figure 1 is a peraccent lever is placed in a suitable position spective illustrating the application of my to adapt it for manipulation by the pernovel accenting device to a player piano; former. In the present instance the accent 75 Fig. 2 a sectional view on a plane indicated lever is shown as rigidly secured to an oscilby the dotted line 2-2 in Fig. l, looking in latory rod 24 having an arm 25. This arm the direction of the arrows, and Fig. 3 is is connected by means of a link 26 to an an elevation of the accenting valve as seen arm 27 which projects from the valve. A

from the right in Fig. 2. spring 28 connected to arm 27 and to any 80 10 denotes frame work within the piano fixed member. in the present instance to the case, not shown, 11 the key bed, 12 the main key bed, acts to normally retain the valve in bellows from which operating connections the open position as in Fig. 2, and likewise extend to the pedals 14, 15 a duct or air to retain the accent lever in its normal or passage leading from the main bellows to inoperative position. 85

wind chest, not shown, all of which parts opened by the springs 17. Under these conl0 bellows, the equalizing bellows and the wind 2O to the swinging member of the equalizing 5 into the pneumatic system and by means of the operative position against the power of D course produce an accenting effect t0 a liming of course upon which way swinging the equalizing bellows, indicated by 16, 17 The operation is as follows: In ordinary springs normally acting to retain the equaluse, operation of the pedals causes the equalizing bellows distended, and 18 a pipe leadizing bellows to close, and the instant the ing from duct 15 to the striker-pneumatic vacuum tension is relieved, said bellows are 90 are 1n common use in player pianos. ditions, that is in ordinary use, the accent- It is 0f course well understood by those ing bellows are inoperative, valve 22 remainfamiliar with the art that the action of the ing open and the swinging member thereof, pedals is to partially exhaust the main indicated by 29, which is connected by link chest, in fact to partially exhaust the entire bellows, indicated by 30, causing the pivoted pneumatic system. When a perforation in members of said bellows to move in unison. a record (not shown) registers with a port Suppose now that the performer desires to in the tracker bar (not shown), air rushes accent a note. Hel swings accent lever 23 to 100 mechanism, not shown, causes the playing of spring 28 which moves valve 22 to the closa note. The function of the equalizing beling position. The effect of this is to stop lows is to equalize the vacuum tension in the the entrance of air into the accenting belpneumatic system. The performer can of lows or the escape of air therefrom dependlo; ited degree by the degree and quickness of member 29 of the accenting bellows is movhis pressure upon the pedals. The effect is ing) and, as the swinging members of the quite limited, however, for the reason that two bellows are connected by link 20, to the direct action of increased pressure is practically arrest the movement of the against the springs ofthe equalizing bellows, swinging members of both bellows in what- 11C ever position they may be at the instant the accent lever is operated. ln other words, any slight movement of the -equalizingI bellows that may be possible while the accenting lever 23 is retained in its operative position against the power of spring 28, will be insulticient to have any appreciable elect upon the operation ot the instrument, and hence the closing ot' the opening 21 has the etect ot' rendering the bellows 16 inoperative to the extent that it cannot perform its normal functions. lilith the equalizing bellows inoperative, as above stated, it follows that increased or quiclrened pressure upon the pedals will instantly increase the vacuum tension, and the note or notes played while accent lever 23 is held in operative position will be given a marked accent depending upon the quickness and amount of pressure applied to the pedals. To accent a single note the operator simultaneously imparts a opiiclr` movement to the accent lever, instantly releasing it, and a 4quick acceleration of pressure to one ot' the pedals. rlhe instant pressure upon the accent lever is relieved, spring- 28 will return said lever to its normal position and open valve 2:2, as in Fig. 2, the e'l'liect of which is to instantly render the equalizing bellows operative again, so that ordinary variations in pressure upon the pedals will be taken up by the equalizing bellows and will have no appreciable effect upon the vacuum tension.

lrlavingl thus described my claim l. ln a player piano, the combination with main bellows and equalizing bellows, of an accentingr bellows, a connection between said accentingg bellows and the equalizing bellows, an accent lever, and connections oper invention l lever for closing said accentinfb)` bellows, whereb,7 substantial movement ot the equalizing bellows is prevented.

2. ln player piano, the combination with main bellows and equalizingbellows, of an accenting bellows, a pivoted linlr connecting ated by the accent the swinging members oit the accenting bellows and the equalizing bellows, an accent lever and connections operated thereby tor closing' said accenting' bellows to substantially arrest movement oi the swinging members ofthe accenting and the equaliZingbellows.

3. ln a player piano, the combination with main bellows and equalizing bellows, ot' an accenting bellows, a linlr connection between the swinging members of the equalizing and the accenting bellows, a valve controlling the entrance ot air to the aceenting bellows, an accent lever and operating connections between said lever and the valve.

et. ln -a player piano, the combination with main bellows and equalizing bellows, oan accenting; bellows, a link connection between the swinging` members et the ,accenting and the equalizing bellows, a valve controlling the entrance ol' air to the accenting bellows, an arm extending from saidvalve, an accent lever, an oscillatory rod to which said lever is secured and which is `provided with an arm, a linlr connecting` the arms of 'he lever and the valve and a spring' acting; to retain the valve in the open position and the accent lever in its inoperative position.

ln testimony whereolil atliX my signature 7 in presence ot two witnesses.

GEGRG-E H. PAB-SONS.

Witnesses H. W. lvlnann, E. M. -Cnnvnn Genies of this patent may be obtained. for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D `G. 

